Grey
by Paint Splat
Summary: AU. Two cities bordering each other, one based on war and one based on wisdom, have always been seperate, until one day when a pair of electric blue eyes lock with a pair of sea green ones. Can Thalia and Percy run away from black and white and find grey? Thalico/Perlia/Percabeth and Leyna/Jeyna/Jasper. Possibly Perthena and Lezel. T for swearing and violence. More details inside.
1. Prologue: Eyes

_**So I felt like trying something different, and am writing this dystopian future story with PJO characters.**_

_**Boom-bada-boom-bada-boom.**_

_**This story will have multiple pairings, and the main ones are Thalico/Perlia/Percabeth and Leyna/Jeyna/Jasper. This will probably include Perthena as well, and I'm thinking about putting in some Lezel. **_

_**This prologue is basically just to explain everything before the real story kicks off.**_

_**I hope you enjoy, read and review!**_

_**Disclaimer: I don't own anything except the plot and possible OCs included.**_

**Part One: Imaginatio**

**Prologue: Eyes**

"_Beauty is in the eye of the beholder."_

I wake in the dormitory at 6 a.m. and quickly through on a black sweater, black leggings and shorts and black sneakers, which have holes in the bottom. I brush past the door marked with red to prevent illness and creep past all the doors to other dorms, feeling the familiar, enchanting prickle of the thrill of sneaking around on the back of my neck.

I grab my black winter coat from a hook in the vast, oak-floored corridor. I check if the guards are watching, and, when they're not, creep out the door into the cool spring air. I'm technically not supposed to be up until seven but Belli Filioli, or War's Children in English, like me, were born to be bad, and disrespect the rules along the way.

The Cold War gets everyone down, but in the end you always have Bellum to return to. The city gleams silver already, the chrome and black of the buildings a comfort to me. As I turn around a flash of purple catches my eye. A grin sneakily and go along pretending I haven't noticed anything, the smooth tarmac underneath my feet making my footsteps echo.

"Good of you to join me, Reyna." I call over my shoulder, not caring if anyone gets woken up. Here, rule breaking is an art that is rewarded, not punished.

"I should say the same thing." a girl with a long brown braid and wearing a purple cape billowing behind her black blouse and jeans comes out from behind one of the buildings. I flash my friend a smile.

"Where you headin'?" she asks.

"Be careful, you sound too curious. A bit like a Sapientia Filia if you ask me." I tease her. When War exists, Wisdom does too. Sapientia is the city across from ours, and no one is allowed to cross into another city or even another's territory. It's forbidden.

"Don't be an ass." Reyna punches me on the shoulder, but I'm in no mood for a play fight- even though our fights are usually anything but painful.

I know she won't give up asking me though. That's another trait of Belli Filioli- stubbornness.

"I'm going outside the city. Besides, Leo'll be up soon and he'll be lookin' for you." I break into a jog. Leo is Reyna's boyfriend. In Bellum, we pick our own wives and husbands, and are free to court as we wish. A lot better than those arranged marriages Sapientia has.

"As will Nico." she says mysteriously, keeping up with my pace. If I was a weak girl I'd be blushing, but I'm not, so I don't. Nico is one of my friends, and lately I've been sensing something more between us. Not that I want to start courting, of course, but he is very persistent and I feel my will is failing, to my displeasure.

"Yeah, yeah." I brush her words off casually, breaking into a run. This time Reyna doesn't follow me but stays standing where I left her.

"Tell Nico where I'm going!" I yell over my shoulder, and she disappears with her purple cape flying over her shoulders as usual.

I continue running til I reach the city boundaries. When the Cold War started they brought in computer security to replace the men very early. It works better.

I calmly walk forwards into the path of a red laser going across the whole city- it doesn't hurt but just identifies you.

"Thalia Grace, Bellum Filia." it croaks out in a metallic voice. I hate my surname, because it's everything I don't have- the elegance and grace of a Sapientia- not that I'm jealous.

All the girl's in Bellum are referred to as Bellum Filia, War's Daughter, and the boys are called Belli Filius, War's Son. The same occurs in Sapientia, except theirs are Sapientia Filia and Sapientiae Filius, Wisdom's Daughter and Wisdom's Son.

I make it out the city and leave the lingering stench of pollution behind me as I head to the Dark Woods, the gravel turning into twigs under my feet and the air turning into that musky scent that I love. I carry on at a walk through the Dark Woods, occasionally stopping to quickly climb a tree. I see daylight and brace myself to leave the cool shady darkness under the cover of the trees. I reach the very edge of the Dark Woods and stop, staring out at Sapientia.

The buildings here a a pick-and-mix of different types of architecture, white Greek-style pillars mixed with wooden beams on old, giant houses, and thatched roofs on quaint cottages, plus more. The air seems to smell permanently like flowers here. I stare out at the field, taking in the immense, cheerful greenness, and turn to the highlight of Sapientia- its ginormous library. The wooden bricks bring a sense of power to life inside me, stirring up mixed feelings. I wonder what it would be like to be Sapientia Filia, wearing modest clothing and stroking my hand down book spines, engaged to someone at birth, being as smart as everyone else and knowing that getting the answer right in school won't get you called a swot …

No I don't. I'm happy with my torn dark clothes, making Nico wait to court me, fighting with Reyna, joking with Leo and learning about war, and getting answers wrong. I don't want to be Sapientia Filia.

Of course, there's always Discordia Filiorum …

Discord's Children.

I turn my head away from the cheerful solitude of Sapientia and away from the organised gloom of Bellum, and towards the desert in the distance, its red rocks already looking warm from over here. I shiver, even though my jumper is warm and it's not too cold.

Discordia originally consisted of banished rebels and escaped Prisoners Of War, but soon outcasts started disappearing, and we eventually figured out they were leaving to Discordia and becoming Discordia Filiorum, creating a new society with the meagre food they have. They haven't been heard of in around thirty years. I wonder if there are even any more of them.

I shiver again and turn my head back to Sapientia, intending to head back home, since it's around seven, I believe, but I stop in my tracks, a look of disbelief on my face.

A pair of sea green eyes are staring back at me.

**D/I/S/C/O/R/D/I/A**

The bell wakes me at 5.30 a.m. I shower and change into my everyday clothes: a white suit and shirt with a blue tie symbolising the fact that I'm over 21. All those 18-21 have black ties, and all those 11-17 wear green ties. 7-10 year olds wear white ties, and under-sevens wear no tie. It's a silly rule but I find it endearing enough.

My name is Percy Jackson. I belong to Sapientia, a city representing wisdom, knowledge and- our fatal flaw- curiosity. I always feel a bit left out by that; apparently I'm too loyal to my friends, more of a Bellum trait. Bellum is the city opposite us that represents war, a bit of a let-down since the Cold War is still going on, and will probably only end when we're all wiped out.

That's' the kind of things we're taught to think in Sapientia.

I am 23 years old and I'm engaged to Annabeth Chase. In Sapientia we're engaged to another man or woman at birth, and marry them at 25. In Bellum they court and marry who they choose when they choose, which sounds amazing, but Annabeth is nice enough.

I live in the research complex in the centre of Sapientia next to the big library, the city's pride and joy, and I work there too.

Annabeth walks besides me now as we make our way downstairs, her on her way to the lab and me supposedly getting a morning cup of coffee, but I like to take certain detours- another Bellum trait. I keep things like this silent. Disregarding the rules is frowned upon, and normally what Belli Filioli, War's Children, more likely known as the teenagers of Bellum, and some of the adults too, do.

That makes me Sapientiae Filius, Wisdom's Son. I'm not sure how I feel about that.

Annabeth is wearing a grey blouse and a knee-length pale blue skirt. Girls don't have a silly rule like the ties men have, but their skirts must be knee-length and they must not wear sleeves shorter than their elbows unless they're with their husband.

"Going for coffee?" a voice asks sarcastically, but I think only I pick it up, Annabeth being engrossed in a pamphlet at the time.

It's my best friend Jason, tall, blonde and exactly the opposite of me, with my dark hair and sea green eyes. His are an icy blue. The hair is another Bellum thing about me- maybe I should just be one of them. The thought of being Belli Filius- War's Son- sends shivers down my spine.

"Of course." I reply hastily. Sapientia Filiorum- Wisdom's Children like me, Annabeth and Jason- have to have their wits about them all the time- kind of like Belli Filioli.

"Get me one please?" Annabeth asks sweetly. I guess I'll be getting coffee on my way back then.

Manners are another Sapientia trait, and my lack of them when I was younger made my mother joke I was in the wrong city, and should be in Bellum sparring. Now the joke seems to be getting less and less funny.

"No problem."

"Thanks."

Jason, Annabeth and I continue down the silver and blue halls until we reach the main hall of the building, where elevators and stairs take people to various labs, computer rooms, libraries and even the cafeteria.

"See you guys there." I wave goodbye to them as they head to the stairs leading to lab 48GL. "Say hello to Piper for me."

They nod and disappear, Annabeth kissing my cheek lightly on the way out. That's another thing. Public displays of affection between couples are limited to hand holding and cheek kisses until you're alone- and then if you're alone and married. Another stupid rule.

Piper is Jason's sort-of fiancé. They're orphans and the court decided that when they were twenty-five they could pick who they wanted to marry, but everyone knows they're going to pick each other.

I head out the building and stare at it. From the outside it's breath-taking- sturdy Greek-like architecture, the white pillars imposingly staring down at you, everything about it, all the white purity shining in the early sun. The sun almost always shines here.

I turn away from the already bustling Main Street and into a back alley, heading out towards the edge of the city and into the wild territory- not as wild as the Dark Woods surrounding Bellum. Their shadow lingers on us every day.

I get to the city borders. Like Bellum, we have a computer security system. The green laser runs round the whole of Sapientia. I step through it casually.

"Perseus Jackson, Sapientiae Filius." it calls out and I continue on my journey to nowhere.

I rush through the fields, not sure why today of all days I'm in a hurry. It's just like any other day, yet here I am walking through grass at 6.30 in the morning.

I stop to sit by a stream, letting my thoughts bubble like the water. Stuff like my similarity with Belli Filioli, my strange first name, my mother, Annabeth and Bellum fly through my head. I look towards their city but can't get a good enough view. I have to go closer.

I walk on, careful to remember the time. Work starts at eight a.m. but Annabeth, Jason, Piper and various others usually like to get head starts with their projects. I reach the edge of Sapientia's territory and stop, staring at what I can see over the treetops.

Bellum's Tower Of Strategy, where they hold court and other stuff, looms high over everything else, the black and chrome peeking over the Dark Woods and blocking out the sun so a shadow lies on my face.

The shadows really need to leave me alone.

I turn my head to the left, seeing the scorching red desert of Discordia. I wonder what it would be like to be there, on my own with no rules at all, whether they're Sapientia or Bellum. This leads me to wondering about what it would feel like to wear black ripped clothes, do what I wanted and learn to fight …

Curiosity may be fatal after all.

I turn back to get one final glance of the dark war city before I go and stand frozen, my eyes glued to the scene.

A pair of electric blue eyes stare back.

_**And that's the prologue. I know filler/explanation chapters are usually a bit boring, but I hope this wasn't :)**_

_**R&R!**_


	2. Chapter 1: Troublemaker

_**So I'm back, and thanks for all the lovely reviews. This story seems to be quite popular :D**_

**Influenced by a suggestion from a guest reviewer I have decided to include Leo/Piper (Pleo, Liper, whatever you wanna call it) in later chapters. I will also be including Frazel (please don't panic and hate me) and Zoë/Percy plus some Zoë/Thalia as well. And possibly Piper/Annabeth. Basically, it's a 'ship ALL the ships' Fanfic to please everyone. But the main focus of the story is not the romance, despite the big amount of it bubbling up.**

**I hope you enjoy this chapter :)**

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything except the plot and any OCs that may be included.**

**P.S.: I was thinking about songs to go with pairings, and I got 'Dance With You' by Bowling For Soup for Leo/Piper, and 'Here's Your Freakin' Song' by Bowling For Soup for Thalia/Percy. Yeah, I was listening to Bowling For Soup.**

**Part One: Imaginatio**

**Chapter One:** **Troublemaker**

_"All things truly wicked start from an innocence." Ernest Hemingway, A Moveable Feast_

What is he doing so far out? I know curiosity is a Sapientia trait but surely they can't be _that_ stupid? Come to think of it, why am I still standing here? I shouldn't even be near him, let alone STILL be near him.

He seemed less bothered than me, recovering from the shock quickly. That was when I noticed he was handsome. Not dark, devilish, mysterious-aura hot like Nico, or that cheeky mix of cuteness and hotness Leo possessed, but he radiated power, it streamed out from his tanned skin, raven-black hair and eyes like the ocean. If it wasn't for the clothes I would've mistaken him for a Belli Filius.

If I was a weak girl, I'd run away, but I'm not so I won't.

He should be the weak one, running away in terror from someone who could snap his neck, but he's standing still, watching me watch him.

Curious.

"Hi." he says finally. My mouth threatens to drop to the floor but I gain control of my body swiftly.

"Hello." I say back quietly, then repeat it louder because he obviously didn't hear me.

"Are you supposed to be out here? You look around sixteen." he states. I boil with anger- a Bellum trait.

"I'm nineteen." I spit out. I then decide to tease him. "But old for my age. I'm just born to be bad." I say with a swish of my hips, not caring that he's probably married.

"I'm 23." he says, surprisingly not blushing but smirking instead.

So he's _not_ married …

Interesting.

I step closer so I'm almost crossing over the line. The man doesn't seem surprised though- I guess he'd pretty much judged me as a rule-breaker. He's right, too.

"I'm from Bellum." I state obviously, cursing my social awkwardness. Belli Filioli are much better in combat than in conversation.

"Yeah, no shit." he mumbles. Now it's my turn to be shocked; do Sapientia Filiorum swear, or is it just him?

This whole thing continues to seem like a dream.

"Well, excuse me for trying to be friendly." I grumble.

"A Bellum trying to be friendly? Now I know I'm definitely dreaming." his voice is icy- not good. How was I supposed to know he'd be so uptight?

"You wanna dance?" I say, thinking of something to lighten this situation up. Stupidly, since I'm not even sure I can dance, let alone him.

"With you?" he asks. Is he dumb, or maybe just obtuse? Or Captain Obvious.

"No, with my father." I smirk sarcastically. He grins back.

"Why, is he here?" he asks. I'm stumped.

He's good.

"Uh …" I should really say something more intelligent but that's not me.

"I win." he grins wickedly.

"I'll win next time." I blush and mumble. Okay, so he can make me blush, a stranger who I've known for ten minutes and whose name I don't know, but Nico can't, a boy who I've known my whole life? What's up with that?

"So they'll be a next time?" he asks, hopeful with a dash of cheek. I like that.

I like him. Genuinely, as a person, not just because he's hot- though he is.

"If you get lucky." I smile.

"I always get what I want." he states arrogantly. Arrogance- a Bellum trait. Along with his looks, his lack of manners, his hair messed up by the wind, he could be one of us.

Wait, he just said he always gets what he wants- does he want _me_? The thought makes me blush.

"I'm Percy." he says finally.

_Percy_.

I try the name out in my mind, and it fits perfectly.

"They call me Thalia." I say, leaving that as my goodbye and turning to head back home, since it's probably past seven.

"I'll be here at exactly the same time tomorrow." he yells.

"As will I, Percy. As will I." I call over my shoulder.

I can sense he's grinning as he walks away, because I'm grinning too.

**D/I/S/C/O/R/D/I/A**

She's amazing.

Her blue eyes, her black spikey hair, her flawless pale skin- apart from a few freckles I noticed- her attitude, the way she talks and captivates me …

That last fact reminds me of Annabeth a bit. They'd be great friends.

That also reminds me of how I'm going to be late for work if I don't move my ass so I hurry across the fields and through the city until I reach the labs. I head upstairs to find Jason and Piper side by side working on one of the massive computers.

"What's going on, guys?" I ask them, coming to stand next to Piper.

"We're developing a program that will allow us to keep track of all the deaths and births in Bellum." Jason says, using his fingers to enlarge a diagram on the computer, showing me a bunch of charts. Despite my upbringing I've never really been that into science and stuff so I let Jason talk on while all the while just thinking about Thalia, and how she'd be yawning and murmuring in my ear at the moment …

"Annabeth had the original idea. She spent weeks doing it on paper. Piper fixed it up perfectly online." Jason grins, Annabeth's name bringing me back down to earth, away from the border between Sapientia and Bellum, and away from Thalia's enchanting blue eyes.

He shoots a glance at Piper, who blushes and takes his hand. I bet they'd probably want to kiss but since they're in public and they're not allowed.

I bet Thalia wouldn't give a shit about these rules …

God, why is this girl so stuck in my brain? It's not as if Annabeth is any less pretty than her, but somehow putting Thalia's boldness in everything including her looks next to Annabeth's prim and proper looks I find a reason why I'm so obsessed with Thalia- because she's hot.

Now, don't get me wrong, I'm not shallow, but maybe being surrounded by woman in skirts down to their knees and then suddenly standing about three feet away from a girl in leggings and shorts is going to have an effect on me.

And everything has a solution. That's another Sapientia thing.

And this solution is very dangerous, illegal, and endangering my career.

That's a Bellum thing.

**D/I/S/C/O/R/D/I/A**

At lunch I rush to one of the empty classrooms, knowing Annabeth will be there after teaching young Sapientia Filiorum basic Physics like she does every Saturday.

She's there, her blonde hair in a neat, orderly ponytail, talking to one of her students, a child around eight years old in a white tie. I smile at this. For a minute Annabeth's' blonde hair flashes to short black hair in my mind, but it quickly replaced.

The boy goes, leaving Annabeth and me on our own. I walk up to her and touch her shoulder lightly. She jumps- it's unlike Annabeth to be shocked or frightened, she's usually so calm. Today has been an unusual day though- and turns, her grey eyes lighting up when she sees me.

"Hello, Percy. How are you?" she asks, regaining her unruffled composure.

"I'm great, but the important thing is, how are you, Annabeth?" I ask, stepping closer. The thing about hanging round with Bellum Filia is that it gives you enough courage to do just about anything if you want to.

"Percy, are you okay?" asks Annabeth nervously.

"Me, I'm great." I said. Quickly, before Annabeth could step away I captured her lips in a fierce, illegal kiss lasting around five seconds, until Annabeth pushes me off her, looking scared.

"Percy, that's against the rules." she whispers, like the court judges and police are hiding in the cupboards.

"I'm a troublemaker, Annabeth. I'm just born to be bad." I kiss her again, and this time she melts into it, until I suddenly pull away and leave, taking off my tie as I go.

It's not until I reach my bedroom that I realise I stole Thalia's line from this morning.

_**I hope you enjoyed this, slightly shorter, chapter!**_

_**I also hope you noticed the references (okay, more like stolen lines XD) from RENT. In my ideal PJO-RENT world, Thalia and Percy are Mimi and Roger, Leo is Mark, Reyna and Piper are Maureen and Joanne, and Nico and Jason are Collins and Angel. Luke is Benny and Annabeth is Allison, making Rachel April! I was gonna make Annabeth or Calypso April, but Annabeth/Luke is more possible and April has red hair anyway so Rachel fit that more.**_

_**I can so see Thalia and Percy doing Light My Candle, and Leo, Piper and Reyna doing Tango: Maureen, and Reyna and Piper doing Take Me Or Leave Me, and Thalia doing Out Tonight, and her and Percy doing Another Day, and One Song Glory actually fits Luke more but whatever! It's so perfect!**_

_**XD, after that's out the way, I hope you liked this big slam of Perlia and Percabeth I dumped on you. Next chapter will definitely have a lot of Thalico I think. And a lot of Thalia in general. I kinda disliked the bit I wrote for her here, mostly because it was mainly dialogue. The main ships for the moment will be Percabeth, Perlia and Thalico, with slightly less Leyna and Jasper.**_

_**R&R!**_

_**Paint Splat xoxo.**_


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